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AUTHOR: 


BOISE,  JAMES  ROBINSON 


TITLE: 


THE  PRONUNCIATION 
OF  GREEK... 

PLACE: 

[CHICAGO] 

DA  Τ  Ε : 

[1 876] 


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OR:    POL: 
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enggre 

Boise,  James  Robinson, i:dl815-1895. 

The  pronunciation  of  Greek  in  this  countryi:h[microf orm.l 
[Chicago, i:cl876] 
p.  480-483i:c24  cm. 

Greek  language{:xPronunciation. 
RLIN 

02-04-93 


AD:02-04-93 
UD:02-04-93 


11:0 
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V 

THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  GREEK  IN  THIS  COUNTRY. 


JAMES  E.  BOISE,  PH.  D.,  LL.  D., 

PROFESSOR  OF  GREEK,  CUICAGO,  IIX. 


i 


480 


BEPORT  OF  THE  COMMISSIONER  OP  EDUCATION. 


THE  PRONUNCIATION  OP  GREEK  IN  THIS  COUNTRY. 


481 


TH£  ΡΒΟΝΓΝ€ΙΑΤΙΟΝ  OF  GREEK  IIV  THIS  COUNTRr. 


JAMES  R.  BOISE,  Ph.  D.,  LL.D., 

Profeeeor  of  Greek,  Chicago,  IlL 


Three  methods  of  pronouncing  Greek  have  prevailed  more  or  less  in  American  schools: 

1.  The  English  system  ; 

2.  The  Modern  Greek,  called  also  Reuchlinian  ;  and 

3.  The  method  sometimes  styled  "  Continental,"  sometimes  "Erasmian." 

Of  the  first,  which  was  almost  universal  in  this  country  fifty  years  ago,  Goodwin,  in 
the  Preface  of  his  Greek  Grammar,  very  justly  and  forcibly  remarks,  "That  monstrosity, 
the  so-called  *  English  system,'  which  saddled  the  Greek  at  once  with  English  vowel 
sounds  and  Latin  accents,  is  now  unintelligible  to  the  majority  of  our  scholars ;  and  it 
is  not  likely  that  a  system  which  requires  the  use  of  a  foreign  system  of  accentuation 
will  ever  be  generally  adopted." 

The  second,  the  modem  Greek  pronunciation,  while  advocated  by  some  very  eminent 
men,  has  been  adopted  in  very  few  schools,  and  need  not  here  be  particularly  described." 

The  third,  the  so-called  continental  or  Erasmian  method,  is  already  widely  preva- 
lent, is  every  year  rapidly  gaining  ground,  and  seems  likely,  very  soon  to  become 
almost  universal  in  our  American  schools.!  It  is,  therefore,  this  method  of  pronouncing 
Greek  which  I  propose  here  briefly  to  describe. 

THE  SO-CALLED  CONTINENTAL  OR  ERASMLA.N  METHOD  OF  PRONOUNCING  GREEK. 

L  OF  THE  SOUNDS  OF  Tm£  VOWELS* 

A,  a,  has  the  sound  of  a  in  father, 

H,  η,  has  the  sound  of  a  in  gate,  late, 

E,  ε,  has  the  sound  of  e  in  men. 

I,  ij  has  the  sound  of  i  in  machine. 

Q,  Qj  has  the  sound  of  ο  in  tone. 

O,  0,  has  the  same  sound  as  ω,  with  half  the  length.  When  followed  by  a  consonant  in 
the  same  word,  it  is  quite  common  to  pronounce  it  like  ο  in  log  ;  yet  this  sound 
is  not  strictly  correct,  and  should  never  be  given  to  ο  before  another  vowel,  or  at 
the  end  of  a  word.  It  is  sometimes,  both  in  this  country  and  in  Germany,  pro- 
Eounced  with  an  explosive,  guttural  sound,  to  indicate  that  it  is  short.  Thus, 
TO  is  pronounced  almost  as  though  it  were  written  τόχ^  the  last  letter  purely  aspi- 
rate. This  sound  should  be  carefully  avoided.  The  same  caution  should  also  be 
observed  in  pronouncing  the  other  short  vowel,  ε. 

*The  modem  Greek  pronunciation  was  taught  in  Germany  by  the  celebrated  theologian  Reuchlin 
(bom  1455,  died  1522) ;  and  at  that  time  appears  to  have  been  in  general  use  wherever  the  Greek  l^knguago 
was  studied.  The  correctness  of  this  pronunciation  was  first  questioned  by  Erasmus  of  llotterdam 
(bom  1467,  died  1536)  in  a  facetious  dialogue  between  a  lion  and  a  bear  (Dialogue  de  recta  Latini 
Graicique  sermonia  pronuutiationo,  Basilea;,  1528).  Erasmus  seems  not  himself  to  have  adopted  the 
«ystem  proposed  in  the  dialogue,  but  to  have  indicated  his  opinion  that  it  was  a  near  approximation  to 
the  ancient  pronunciation.  From  his  time,  however,  the  system  which  bfars  his  name  has  been  con- 
stantly gaining  ground,  and  is  now,  with  unimportant  variations,  the  prevailing  system  in  Germany 
and  many  other  countries. 

fThe  inquiry  has  often  been  made  of  the  Commissioner  of  Education,  "Can  yon  inform  me  what  ie 
the  prevailing  pronunciation  of  Greek  and  Latin  in  this  country  I"  In  order  to  answer  this  inquiry 
satiftfactorily,  letters  were  sent  to  fu\  the  leading  classic  al  professors,  asking  them  for  a  brief  statement 
of  their  metbod  of  pronunciation.  The  letters  relating  to  the  pronunciation  of  Greek  were  placed  In 
my  hands.  I  have  examined  one  hundred  and  twenty-tive,  taken  at  random  from  a  considerably  larger 
number,  and  the  result  was  as  follows:  Two  professors,  out  of  the  entire  number,  teach  the  modem 
Greek  pronunciation ;  eighteen  tt  ach  the  English  system ;  four  teach  partlv  the  English  and  partly 
the  continental  system ;  and  one  hundred  and  one  the  Erasmian  method  only.  It  thus  appears  that 
the  pronunciation  of  Greek  in  this  country  is  far  more  uniform  than  that  of  Latin.  The  fact  is  worthy 
of  special  notice  that  of  the  twelve  oldest  and  best  known  New  England  ooUegee— two  in  Maine,  one  in 
New  Hampshire,  two  in  Vermont,  three  in  Massachusetts,  one  in  Rhode  Island,  and  three  in  Connec- 
ticut—not one  of  the  entire  number  any  longer  retains  the  English  pronunciation  of  Greek,  although 
several  of  them  still  retain  the  English  pronunciation  of  Latin.  The  example  of  tjl^e  New  England 
colleges  alone  must  have  great  weight  in  settling  the  usage  in  all  the  younger  institutions  and  in  the 
newer  States.  The  fact  is  also  worthy  of  note  that  in  nearly  all  the  colleges  of  this  country  the  change 
fi-om  the  English  to  the  Erasmian  method  has  been  made  chiefly  within  the  last  quarter  of  a  century. 


i 


I 


ih' 


T,  V,  like  the  French  u  or  the  German  w.    Often,  however,  owing  to  the  diflSculty  we 
find  in  giving  this  sound,  ν  is  pronounced  like  the  English  u  in  lucidj  or  like  mv 
in  few. 
No  distinction  in  pronunciation  is  usually  made  between  a  and  a,  i  and  t,  Ό 
and  V ;  e.  g.^  άρα  and  άρα,  καλός  (Epic)  and  καλός  (Attic),  Ισος  (Homeric)  and  Ισος  (At- 
tic), λϋ-  and  λν-  in  the  verb  λυω,  are  pronounced  alike. 

In  actual  practice,  α  and  t  are  usually  shortened  a  little  when  followed  by  a 
double  consonant  or  by  two  single  consonants  in  the  same  word ;  e.  g.,  the  ι  in  ϊστημι 
is  usually  pronounced  like  i  in  history^  the  α  in  κάλλος  like  a  in  callous  ;  but  ν  is  not 
thus  shortened,  e.  </.,  ν  in  νψος  and  νστερος  is  sounded  like  υ  in  wo,  ΰδωρ;  also,  ν  in 
έκρυψα  like  υ  in  έλνσά,  never  like  u  in  lamp. 

Π.  OP  THE  SOUNDS  OF  THK  OffHTHONGS. 

In  at  both  vowels  are  sounded,  nearly  as  in  αίβΖβ,  or  aye  (expressing  a^ent). 

et,  like  ei  in  height.* 

oLj  like  oi  in  toii,  oil. 

αν,  like  the  German  au,  or  the  English  ou  in  housCf  our, 

eVf  like  eu  in  neutral.] 

oVf  like  ou  in  courier;  i.  e.,  like  oo  in  boot, 

vif  like  wi  in  tcintery  or  ui  in  quit. 

^,  Vi  9y  are  pronounced  like  a,  7,  ω  ;  i.  e.,  the  iota  is  not  pronounced  at  all 

ην  is  pronounced  like  et;. 

uv  is  pronounced  like  ου, 

m.  OF  THE  BOUNDS  OF  THE  CONSONANTS. 

B,  /3,  like  h. 

Γ,  7,  like  g  hard,  never  g  soft ;  but  y  before  a  palatal  (/c,  y,  χ,  or  ξ)  has  the  sound  of 
Η  in  anger ^  and  was  represented  by  η  in  Latin ;  e.  gi.,  άγκυρα^  Latin  ancora,  anchor, 
The  mistake  is  sometimes  made  of  pronouncing  y  like  ng  before  μ;  as  in  λέλεγμαι^ 
wrongly  pronounced  lelengmaiy  correctly  pronounced  lilegmai. 

Δ,  δ,  like  d. 

Z,  ζ,  is  generallv  in  this  country  pronounced  as  the  English  z.  It  is  also  pronounced 
thus  by  the  modem  Greeks.  Some  American  scholars,  however,  pronounce  ζ  as 
dz;  e.  g.f  σώζω,  pronounced  sodzo.  This  pronunciation  is  recommended  generally 
in  the  best  German  grammars,  and  Hadley,  in  his  Elements  of  the  Greek  Lan- 
guage («J  11,  a),  remarks:  "  It  is  supposed  that  ζ  had  at  first  the  sound  of  dz.^^ 

Θ,  -df  Θ,  is  pronounced,  in  this  oountry  and  in  Great  Britain,  always,  I  think,  like  th  in 
thick,  thin. 

The  modern  Greeks  pronounce  this  letter  as  we  do.  The  Germans  have  great 
diflSculty  in  giving  this  sound;  and  Georg  Curtius  (Erlauterungen  zu  meiner 
griechischen  Schulgrammatik,  p.  19)  says  of  this  letter,  "  It  is  not  advisable  for 
us  [Germans]  to  accustom  ourselves  to  a  pronunciation  which  is  foreign  to  us,  and 
which  can  be  shown  also  not  to  be  the  ancient  pronunciation."  It  is  quite  possible 
that  the  ancient  Greeks,  in  pronouncing  all  three  of  the  rough  mutes,  φ,  χ,  and  θ, 
made  the  initial  sound  sharper  and  more  like  the  corresponding  smooth  mutes,  π,  κ, 
and  r,  than  we  do.  This  seems  to  be  indicated  by  the  sounds  they  have  in  Sanskrit, 
j)'Aa,  λ'Αα,  Vha ;  also  by  the  Roman  mode  of  representing  these  letters,  at  least  by 
writing  ph,  instead  of  /,  in  words  of  Greek  origin.  But  if  the  Germans  content 
themselves  with  their  pronunciation  of  0  and  χ,  we  have  equally  good  reason  to  be 
satisfied  with  our  pronunciation  of  Θ.  It  is  one  of  those  nice  points  about  which 
we  need  not  be  over  anxious. 

K,  K,  like  k,  or  c  hard. 

A,  λ,  like  I. 

M,  μ,  like  m.  ' 

N,  V,  like  n. 

H|  ξί  like  ks.  Each  sound,  even  at  the  beginning  of  a  word,  should  be  distinctly  heard. 
Thus,  ξένος  should  not  be  pronounced  as  though  it  began  with  ζ,  but  with  the 
palatal  sound  κ  at  the  beginning  distinctly  audible.  So,  also,  Βενοίρών  should 
not  be  pronounced  in  Greek  as  Xenophon  in  English,  but  with  κ  and  σ  both  audi- 
ble.   This  is  not  difficult  after  a  little  practice. 

Π,  π,  like  J). 

*  This  is  the  usual  pronunciation  both  in  Germany  and  in  this  country ;  but  Professor  Sophocles,  in 
bis  work  on  "The  Greek  Alphabet  and  Pronunciation,"  and  Professor  Packard  of  Yale  College,  in  an 
articje  in  the  liew  Englander  (January,  1871),  propose  for  ei  the  sound  nearly  of  si  in  freight,  rein. 
Curtius  favors  the  distinct  utterance  of  both  vowels  β  and  t,  which  would  yield" nearly  the  sound  of  ei 
in  rein.  Kiihner,  on  the  other  hand,  argiies  in  favor  of  the  present  pronunciation,  and  thinks  it  α  near 
approximation  to  that  of  the  classic  period.  If  we  pronounce  it  like  ei  in  height,  we  must  be  careful  to 
distinguish  between  ει  and  at ;  if  like  ei  in  rein,  to  distinguish  between  it  and  1?. 

i  The  German  pronunciation  of  this  diphthong,  which  makes  it  nearly  identical  with  01,  English  0% 
in  boU,  is  not  to  be  recommended,  and  is  not  favored  by  Cartioe. 

31  Ε 


482 


REPORT   OF   THE   COMMISSIONER    OF   EDUCATION. 


P,  p,  like  r  in  the  laDguages  of  continental  Enrope  ;  that  iR,  stronger  and  more  dietinot 
than  in  English.  The  sound  of  r  is  almost  if  not  quite  inaudible  as  many  per- 
sons pronounce  uar,  liberty,  and  many  other  English  words.  This  fault  should 
be  carefully  guarded  against  in  pronouncing  Greek.  Another  fault,  even  more 
common,  cannot  be  too  carefully  avoided,  that  of  pronouncing  ep  like  the  English 
er  in  perfect,  peisuude,  sei-ve,  &c.  It  should  always  be  sounded  like  er  in  merry, 
ferry,  error.  Thus,  έρχομαι  should  never  be  pronounced  urchomai;  έργον,  never  urgon. 
The  rough  breathing  over  ρ  at  the  beginning  of  a  word,  and  in  some  editions  over 
tne  second  p  when  doubled  in  the  middle  of  a  word,  is  thought  by  some  scholars 
to  indicate  simply  the  rolling  of  the  letter.  (Of.  History  of  the  Greek  Alphabet  by 
Prof.  E.  A.  Sophocles,  p.  115.)  To  most  Americans  the  rolling  of  the  letter  is  some- 
what difficult,  and  in  practice  is  not  generally  attempted.  In  fact,  I  doubt 
whether  the  rough  breathing  was  intended  for  this  purpose.  I  think  we  very 
naturally  utter  au  initial  ρ  with  a  perceptible  aspiration,  and  it  is  not  improba- 
ble that  the  rough  breathing  was  intended  to  indicate  this.  Such  is  the  opinion 
of  Kilhner  (cf.  AusfUhrliche  Grammatik,  erster  Theil,  erste  Abtheilung,  $  6). 
1,  a,  ς,  like  «  in  %\r',  i.  e.,  always  sibilant,  never  like  z.  There  is  a  strong  tendency  to 
pronounce  σ,  ς,  like  ζ  in  many  Greek  words,  as  in  μονσα,  τής,  ύς.  In  μούσα,  the 
analogy  of  the  English  word  mu8e  may  account  for  this  tendency.  It  should  be 
caiefully  avoided,  and  σ,  ς,  always  be  made  purely  sibilant. 
T,  r,  always  like  t.  Thus  Βοιώτως  should  never  be  pronounced  Boia-she-us,  but  always 
Boi-o-ti-os;  although  the  English  word  Boeotian  is  usually  pronounced  Bee-o-ake- 
an.  'Ύπατια  is  pronounced  Hu-pa-tta  (French  u  in  the  first  syllable) ;  although 
in  English  we  say  Hy-pd-nhe-a. 
Φ,  ^,  like  ph  in  philosophy. 

X,  χ,  like  the  German  ch  after  a,  o,  or  m,  as  in  sprachen,  machen  ;  or  like  the  Scotch  ch  in 
loch  ;  not  like  the  German  ch  after  e,  i,  or  y,  as  in  ich,  nicht.    It  is  frequently  pro- 
nounced in  this  latter  way  by  the  Germans,  and  sometimes  in  this  country  ;  but 
this  sound  is,  I  think,  certainly  false,  as  it  is  not  palatal.    The  true  sound  is 
somewhat  difficult  for  an  American  who  has  not  learned  German.    It  is  a  strong 
aspiration  in  the  palate,  distinguishing  this  letter  at  once  from  κ,  the  corr^ 
sponding  smooth  mnte.    Thus,  έχϋος  and  εκτός  would  be  distinguished  not  only 
by  the  lingual  (r-mute)  and  by  the  accent,  but  also,  and  equally,  by  the  palatal 
(«-mute):  ouxand  ονχ  are  alt*o  readily  distinguished. 
Ϋ,  ip,  likeps,  with  both  sounds  distinctly  heard  ;  at  the  beginning,  not  less  than  in  the 
middle,  of  a  word. 
N.  B.— Particular  care  should  be  taken  in  pronouncing  the  double  consonants,  or  two 
single  consonants,  at  the  beginning  of  a  word,  to  give  each  letter  its.  proper  sound; 
as,  rrvtu,  ττνενμα,  κνέφας,  κτ?/αα,  πτολεμαίος,  Ϋ^ίσις,  ξ€ο>,  rljau,  pronounced  pneo,  pueuma, 
knephas,  &c.,  with  the  ρ  or  the  k  distinctly  sounded.    Avoid  also  putting  in  a  vowel 
sound  after  the  initial  consonant.    Not  peneo,  ke-nephas,  &c.,  but  the  two  consonants 
in  close  succession.    This  is  not  difficult  to  those  who  are  familiar  with  German. 

Under  this  head  may  be  mentioned  the  breathings,  rough  (spiritus  asper)  and 
smooth  (spiritus  lenis).  The  rough  breathing,  placed  over  the  initial  vowel  (as  ΰν), 
corresponds  to  the  letter  h  in  his ;  the  smooth  breathing,  also  placed  over  an  initial 
vowel  (as  δν),  indicates  the  absence  of  the  aspiration,  and  might  bo  very  useful  to 
such  careless  or  ill  educated  persons  as  would  in  English  confound  all  and  hall,  is  and 
his,  oh  and  hoe,  &c.  Every  word  beginning  with  a  vowel  or  diphthong  had  one  or  the 
other  of  these  breathings,  which,  however,  in  the  case  of  a  proper  diphthong,  was 
placed  over  the  second  vowel. 

rV.  OF  THE  ACCENTS. 

As  ie  known  to  every  scholar,  there  are  three  forms  of  accent  in  Greek ;  but  it  is  not 
now  customary  to  make  any  distinction  in  sound  between  them.  Thus,  καλός,  πατ/φ, 
as  they  would  bt»  written  at  the  end  of  a  sentence,  are  pronounced  like  κηλύς,  πατ7φ, 
as  they  would  be  written  in  the  middle  of  a  sentence ;  and  νε^,  νε<~),  or  λεώ,  λεό»,  as  they 
are  variously  written,  are  pronounced  alike.  '       '  '        * 

The  written  accents  indicate  in  all  cases  the  syllable  on  which  the  stress  of  voice 
falls.  A  proclitic  should  be  pronounced  as  an  unaccented  syllable  of  the  following 
word,  and  an  enclitic  as  au  unaccented  syllable  of  the  preceding  word.  Thus,  d 
άνθρωπος,  άγαι9όν  τι,  αντ<'ς  φημι,  should  each  be  pronounced  with  but  one  accented  sylla- 
ble; ΰν^ρω-ός  τις,  παΐόίς  τίνες,  each  with  two  accented  syllables.  In  εΐ  τις  μοί  (ρησί  ττοτε 
and  similar  combinations,  the  accent  should  be  carefully  observed.  ' 

It  is  sometimes  objected  to  the  use  of  the  written  G^eek  accents  that  we  cannot  at 
the  same  time  that  wo  observe  them,  make  the  quantity  of  the  vowels  apparent.  But 
it  seems  not  to  be  thought  of  that  this  objection  applies  with  equal  force  to  the  Latin 
rule  for  the  accent.  In  the  Latin,  scholars  generally  make  no  distinction  between  the 
penult  of  stare  (infanitive  of  sio)  and  that  of  dare  (infinitive  of  do)',  or  between 
vxensa  ?  nd  menm,  nominative  and  ablative ;  and  so  in  numberless  other  instances.  Take 
for  example,  this  sentence  from  Cicero :  Nunc  vero,  quw  tua  est  ista  vita  Τ  The  quau- 
tity  of  not  one  of  these  syllables,  unless  it  is  a  diphthong  or  long  by  position,  is  indi- 


" 


THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  GREEK  IN  THIS  COUNTRY.    483 

cated  in  the  pronunciation.  The  objection  is  really  of  no  weight  whatever ;  and  while 
in  Latin  it  applies  to  all  the  vowels,  in  Greek  it  applies  only  to  the  three  doubtful 
vowels  a,  i,  and  v.  It  is  not  difficult, and  is  actually  customary,  to  distinguish  between 
ε  and  j?,  ο  and  ω.  Thus,  every  careful  teacher  and  scholar  will  make  the  difference  be- 
tween λνομαι  and  λνι^μαι,  between  λίεται  and  λνηται,  quite  apparent.  Nor  is  it  very 
λίσαι       *^  *^*'  proper  quantity  of  the  penult  in  such  words  as  άνθρωπος,  λίχΛμι, 

Again,  it  is  said  we  cannot  observe  the  written  accents  in  reading  poetry  as  such 
t.  e.,  metrically.  This  objection  is  equally  short  sighted  with  the  preceding•,  since  it 
applies  with  equal  force  to  the  Latin  rule  for  the  accent.  Let  any  one  undertake  to 
scan  a  verse  in  Virgil,  and  make  the  metrical  accent  (the  ictus  metricus,  as  it  is  some- 
times called)  coincide  with  the  accent  according  to  the  rule  for  prose.  He  will  at 
once  find  that  the  two  are  entirely  independent  of  each  other.  The  same  is  true  in 
Greek  poetry,  showing  that  poetry  among  the  Greeks  and  Romans  was  farther  removed 
Irom  prose,  more  artificial,  more  like  song,  than  with  us. 

V.  OF  THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  GREEK  PROPER  NAMES. 

But  one  question  remains  for  us  to  consider  in  this  paper ;  and  it  is  by  no  means  a 
question  easy  to  settle.  How  shall  we  anglicize  Greek  proper  names  ?  The  conven- 
tional method  IS  this:  to  write  the  Greek  word  with  Roman  letters,  thus  giving  it  the 
form  of  a  Latin  word,  and  then  to  pronounce  it  with  the  English  sounds  of  the  letters 
and  the  Latin  ru  e  for  the  place  of  the  accent.  Thus,  ^ενοψών  (with  the  accent  on  the 
ultima  and  the  double  consonant  Ε  pronounced  as  ks)  becomes  Xenophon  (with  the 
accent  on  the  antepenult  and  the  initial  consonant  pronounced  as  z) ;  Σωκράτης  (accent 
^oniuN^^wl*  fi°^  continental  sound  of  the  a)  becomes  Socrates  (accent  on  the  ante- 
penult). Whether  we  write  the  Greek  κ  in  Latin  as  a  c  or  a  fc;  and  ει  as  ei  or  e  or  i  : 
and  a^ as  at  or  ae;  and  oi  as  oi  or  oe,  the  above  rule  still  holds  good ;  the  vowels  and 
ii?i  Τ?κ  consonants  are  pronounced  as  in  English,  and  the  Latin  rule  for  the 

place  of  the  accent  is  applied.  Whatever  objections  may  lie  against  this  method  of 
deahrg  with  Greek  proper  names,  and  though  something  else  mty  be  substituted  for 
It  before  very  long,  it  is  at  least  the  prevailing  method  at  present.  It  may  require  some 
care  on  meeting  such  a  word  as  ^Αλκιβιάδης  in  a  Greek  sentence,  to  give  it  the  proper 
?ir^rj*j  7°°.  ^w*  ^^*^^;^^^^J  and  then,  on  rendering  the  sentence  into  English,  to  call 
the  word  Alcitiades  or  Alkihiadts,  with  Laiin  accent  and  English  sounds  of  the  vowels. 
But  the  same  care  is  required  in  Latin  and  in  the  modern  languages.  No  one  who 
pronounces  the  c  in  Cicero  hard  in  a  Latin  sentence  would  pronounce  it  Kikiro  in 
ΪΙ&:  r^x  """^  pronounces  the  words  Paris,  Lyons,  etc.,  the  same  in  French  and  in 
Englisb.  Those  who  meet  the  words  Wien,  Munchcn,  Koln,  in  a  German  sentence 
Thn?JtT''^^i¥r°'  9^"?f  \y  ill  German,  call  them  in  English  Vienna,  Munich,  Colognel 
Those  who  visit  Venice,  if  they  speak  German,  French,  Italian,  and  English  learn  for 
runnilTr^li}l^  ^^"^"ί'η^β  ':^"^ΐ^.  ^^riise^  ^enezia,  and  Venice;  and  if  they  speak 
modern  Greek  they  will  have  also  the  word  Βενετία,  all  five  names  diftering  greatly  in 
tbeir  sound.  It  is  no  more  difficult  or  inconsistent  to  change  in  a  similar  way  ancient 
nr«^!L^r^  n"""""  η  •  ^  ?*  requires  care  and  discrimination  to  do  this ;  but  those  qualities 
are  continually  called  m  requisition  in  the  study  of  any  foreign  language ;  and  in  this 
fact  lies  one  of  the  many  benefits  derived  from  the  study  of  languale. 

in  tbe  toregomg  statements,  which  have  been  prepared  in  compliance  with  the  re- 
2!!  fS  ""-^"^  teachers  in  different  parts  of  this  country,  I  have  not  sought  to  give  any 
SnlitanT?  Γ^Γκ*'"^  *^^  pronunciation  of  Greek,  but  simply  to  present  what  I 
understand  to  be  the  most  approved  usage  in  this  country,  without  any  long  arrav  of 
arguments  or  learned  discussions.  Minute  points  of  difference  in  the  sounds  both  of 
J!^r.^^■n^^  "^^^l^^  consonants  undoubtedly  prevail  and  will  ever  prevail  in  pro- 
nouncing  Greek,  and  not  less  in  pronouncing  our  own  language ;  but  the  general  svs- 

th^.t  which  prevails  in  Germany,  so  that  those  who  have  learned  this  system  here,  and 
who  go  to  Germany  for  the  further  prosecution  of  their  classical  studies,  will  nek  to 
T.f^i!'i?"1  only  unimportant,  changes,  in  order  to  understand  and  be  understood, 
fnili  Η  !"■  ί^^'Γ  *^,  P"T®  ^^'^  «"^J*^^*  i'arihev  will  be  well  repaid  bv  reading  care- 
fuUy  the  article  already  referred  to  in  The  New  Englander  for  Januarv,  1?^71,  by  Pro- 
fessor Packard  ;  also  the  work  of  Professor  Sophocles,  History  of  the  Greek  Alphabet 
and  Pronunciation,  published  by  George  Nichols,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  1848;  also  two 
ihlVV  ^iVu^  '"  Ψ9^^Χ^  Essays  (New  York,  Holt  &  Williams,  1873  ,  one  "On 

nnni^oHnn  ^f^/i ^^ ^''Π: ο  ^^« ^^^^^  Acccnt;"  the  othcr  "On  the  ByzaAtine  Greek  Pro- 
nunciation of  the  Tenth  Century,  as  illustrated  by  a  Manuscript  in  the  Bodleian  Library." 
ili  if-  ^.^""^^  language,  consult  especially  Kiihner^s  AusfUhrliche  Grammatik  der 
griechischen  Sprache,  erster  Theil,  erste  Abtheilung,  $  3 ;  Georg  Curtius's  Erliiuterung- 
en  zu  mcner  griechiRchenSchulgrammatik,Cap.l;  also  an  article  by  the  same,  Ueblr 
die  Aussprache  der  griechischen  Vokale  und  Diphthonge,  in  Zeitschrift  lur  die  cester- 
reii  hischen  Gymnasien,  1852,  2.  Heft.  t   ui  uie  ussier 

University  of  Chicago,  January,  1876. 


